The bake sales have passed. The carnival games have ended. But the $116,000 that Putnam City students raised in 2006-07 will make a difference for years to come in supporting cancer research the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation.
The school district Monday night presented OMRF with the money, which was collected through a series of student fund-raising activities during this past school year. It brings the district’s overall giving to OMRF to $2.6 million since 1975. The check was presented to Meredith Miers, OMRF development officer, during a district school board meeting.
“The students and faculty of Putnam City schools are among the most loyal and generous partners and donors to OMRF,” Miers said. “Their gifts have helped our researchers make important inroads against a deadly disease, and we’re confident their support will help with even more cancer research in years to come.”
The Putnam City Cancer Fund Drive was started in 1975 by Lois Thomas, then a teacher at Putnam City High School. Cancer took a heavy toll that decade, striking three of Thomas’ fellow teachers and an administrator in a single year. With the help of fellow teachers, Thomas organized a change drive. Since then, countless bake sales, car washes and carnivals have raised funds for OMRF.
“For 32 years Putnam City has been working with the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation to battle cancer,” said Windsor Hills Elementary School Principal Patricia Hocker, chair of the Cancer Fund Drive. “We’re honored to be partners with OMRF and be part of the hope and part of the fight so that more people may live longer, healthier lives.”
A portion of the money has been used to purchase a variety of sophisticated laboratory equipment, including high-powered microscopes, centrifuges and incubators. The students’ efforts also established the Putnam City Schools Distinguished Chair in Cancer Research, which is held by OMRF scientist Linda Thompson, Ph.D.
The chair is believed to be the only endowed chair anywhere funded entirely by students. And it has led to important progress against cancer. In September, OncoVue, the first genetic-based cancer risk test relevant to all women, became available in selected clinics in Oklahoma and around the country. InterGenetics, an Oklahoma-based biotech company, developed the test based on discoveries made at OMRF by Drs. Thompson and Eldon Jupe.
About OMRF:
Chartered in 1946, OMRF (www.omrf.org) is an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institute dedicated to understanding and developing more effective treatments for human disease. Its scientists focus on such critical research areas as Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, lupus and cardiovascular disease. OMRF’s scientists, who include a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, hold more than 500 U.S. and international patents.
